For eight months, the president of the United States has been directing an unprecedented amount of political venom and vitriol at a single FBI agent. That agent has now been fired in a manner inconsistent with the recommendation of an independent disciplinary arm of the FBI. And because of those two facts, it is impossible not to wonder whether Strzokâs firing was politically motivated, or became more likely because of Trumpâs political attacks â something that Americans should never have to wonder about with law enforcement decisions.
We will likely never know whether Strzok was fired because of political calculations or pressure from the White House. It is plausible, though. But we already have clear evidence â from his calls for jailing of his opponents to his use of pardons for political allies â that Trump sees the rule of law through a purely political lens and that he is trying to bend it to his will. Whether he succeeds or not, his ongoing efforts to politicize the rule of law have already injected a dangerous toxin into Americaâs political bloodstream. I fear any eventual antidote will take years or decades to expel the venom.
And so we come to a place where Brett Kavanaugh is preponderantly likely to be confirmed by the Senate, yet for all the wrong reasons. He will be confirmed not because he is well qualified to sit on the Supreme Court, though he is certainly well qualified. He will be confirmed not because he is a principled and talented jurist, though he is a principled and talented jurist. Indeed, he will be confirmed not because of any of his virtues, though he has many virtues.
He will be confirmed because there are 51 Republican senators in office and a Republican vice president who can break a tie if need be. While he may get a few Democratic votes, he will get confirmedâindeed, he will get a vote at allâbecause Republicans right now have the raw political power to confirm him on their own. That political constellation of power exists because people expect him to vote in certain ways on certain types of cases, to deliver certain specific outcomes on issues they care about. Democrats will oppose him for the same reasons. And hereâs the rub: If the balance of power changes even a little bit before the vote on him takes place and Democrats somehow come into a working majority, then Kavanaugh will not be confirmed and might not even get a vote. Our partisanship over Supreme Court nominations is not yet perfect, but it is getting there fast.
Op-ed from The NY Times on the the Trump Tax Cuts
This graph says it all 
For more graphs with some Op-ed click here
Well! Surprise! Surprise! Anyone who has any appreciation of basic economics could have predicted this outcome months ago, when the greedy lot who now form your current administration first proposed it. Itâs been the same mantra from those on the right for the past 30 - 40 years. âTrickle Downâ has been shown to be a crock in country after country. In the UK, in Australia, in my own country NZ, and anywhere else, including of course the US. Iâm sure you will all be aware of this famous image:
Over 300 newspapers are united today asking to be respected for free and fair press coverage, as a T continues to criticize all news coverage - in his terms âEnemy of the people.â
AUG. 15, 2018
In 1787, the year the Constitution was adopted, Thomas Jefferson famously wrote to a friend, âWere it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.â
Thatâs how he felt before he became president, anyway. Twenty years later, after enduring the oversight of the press from inside the White House, he was less sure of its value. âNothing can now be believed which is seen in a newspaper,â he wrote. âTruth itself becomes suspicious by being put into that polluted vehicle.â
Jeffersonâs discomfort was, and remains, understandable. Reporting the news in an open society is an enterprise laced with conflict. His discomfort also illustrates the need for the right he helped enshrine. As the founders believed from their own experience, a well-informed public is best equipped to root out corruption and, over the long haul, promote liberty and justice.
âPublic discussion is a political duty,â the Supreme Court said in 1964. That discussion must be âuninhibited, robust, and wide-open,â and âmay well include vehement, caustic and sometimes unpleasantly sharp attacks on government and public officials.â
In 2018, some of the most damaging attacks are coming from government officials. Criticizing the news media â for underplaying or overplaying stories, for getting something wrong â is entirely right. News reporters and editors are human, and make mistakes. Correcting them is core to our job. But insisting that truths you donât like are âfake newsâ is dangerous to the lifeblood of democracy. And calling journalists the âenemy of the peopleâ is dangerous, period.
List of papers
John Brennan claps back in The New York Times
Mr. Trumpâs claims of no collusion are, in a word, hogwash.
The only questions that remain are whether the collusion that took place constituted criminally liable conspiracy, whether obstruction of justice occurred to cover up any collusion or conspiracy, and how many members of âTrump Incorporatedâ attempted to defraud the government by laundering and concealing the movement of money into their pockets. A jury is about to deliberate bank and tax fraud charges against one of those people, Paul Manafort, Mr. Trumpâs former campaign chairman. And the campaignâs former deputy chairman, Rick Gates, has pleaded guilty to financial fraud and lying to investigators.
Mr. Trump clearly has become more desperate to protect himself and those close to him, which is why he made the politically motivated decision to revoke my security clearance in an attempt to scare into silence others who might dare to challenge him. Now more than ever, it is critically important that the special counsel, Robert Mueller, and his team of investigators be allowed to complete their work without interference â from Mr. Trump or anyone else â so that all Americans can get the answers they so rightly deserve.
It is astounding how emboldened our criminal President is. Time and again, he commits crimes in broad daylight:
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During a nationally broadcast news conference, Trump openly conspires with the Russians to attack our elections: âRussia, if youâre listening, I hope youâre able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing.â - July 27, 2016
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In a prime-time television program watched by millions, Trump pointedly describes how he obstructed justice: â[Rod Rosenstein] made a recommendation but regardless of [his] recommendation I was going to fire Comey knowing, there was no good time to do it. And in fact when I decided to just do it, I said to myself, I said you know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made up story. . .â - May 11, 2017
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In an interview with one of the nationâs most prominent newspapers, Trump justifies his enemies list, unabashedly confessing why he placed the former head of the CIA on that list and then stripped him of his security clearance: "I call [Muellerâs investigation] the rigged witch hunt, it is a sham. And these people led it! So I think [revoking John Brennanâs security clearance] is something that had to be done.â - August 15, 2018
An excellent editorial in todayâs Washington Post elaborates on the significance of this last bullet:
BingoâŚ
This decision was nothing but getting the critics out of Tâs hair so to speak.
McRaven who lead the raid on Osama bin Laden pens an op-ed in the Washington Post in support of John Brennan.
William H. McRaven, a retired Navy admiral, was commander of the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command from 2011 to 2014. He oversaw the 2011 Navy SEAL raid in Pakistan that killed al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
Dear Mr. President:
Former CIA director John Brennan, whose security clearance you revoked on Wednesday, is one of the finest public servants I have ever known. Few Americans have done more to protect this country than John. He is a man of unparalleled integrity, whose honesty and character have never been in question, except by those who donât know him.
Therefore, I would consider it an honor if you would revoke my security clearance as well, so I can add my name to the list of men and women who have spoken up against your presidency.
Like most Americans, I had hoped that when you became president, you would rise to the occasion and become the leader this great nation needs.
A good leader tries to embody the best qualities of his or her organization. A good leader sets the example for others to follow. A good leader always puts the welfare of others before himself or herself.
Your leadership, however, has shown little of these qualities. Through your actions, you have embarrassed us in the eyes of our children, humiliated us on the world stage and, worst of all, divided us as a nation.
If you think for a moment that your McCarthy-era tactics will suppress the voices of criticism, you are sadly mistaken. The criticism will continue until you become the leader we prayed you would be.
Biggest takeaway here:
Trump told advisers that he wants Attorney General Jeff Sessions to have Manigault Newman arrested, according to one Republican briefed on the conversations.
More bonkers by the day.
Hard to believe this could be possible⌠
Article quote
Meanwhile, former Trump aide Sam Nunberg told me that Trump is lashing out because he sees Manigault Newman as a âformidable enemy.â âHell hath no fury like Omarosa scorned,â Nunberg said.
I think they are only working on the âturn offâ partâŚyikes!
Excellent summary and statistics regarding Trumpâs divisive, rude, crude, hate-filled tweets that reveal who is the real lowlife.
Since taking office in January 2017, Trump has directly insulted, attacked or otherwise maligned nearly 100 individuals, according to our unscientific review of his feed.
Trump has used the phrase âCrooked Hillaryâ more than 60 times since taking office. By comparison, âFake Newsâ clocks in with 252 appearances and âWitch Huntâ at 113. Special counsel Robert Mueller, either directly or in reference to his team, has been named in around 30 tweets.
If you want to view Trumpâs tweets (in the spirit of âknow the oppositionâ), you can find them in the archive below. Viewing here does not add traffic to his actual Twitter feed (which can provide him with a stat to brag about). Also, this archive preserves all his tweets, even the ones he deletes or modifies.
Where does the Republican party find these people? Itâs almost unbelievable that a Republican would welcome the support of a wild-eyed, conspiracy theorist like Mike Cernovich. This isnât a candidate for school board in some little backwater â this is a mainstream Republican candidate running for the U.S. Senate.
After four years of trying to convince Arizona voters to send her to the U.S. Senate, Kelli Ward wraps it up this week . . . By traveling around the state with one of the countryâs most obnoxious conspiracy theorists and male supremacists. Mike Cernovich is best known for his 2016 work promoting Pizzagate, the absurd claim that Hillary Clinton was part of a pedophile ring in the basement of a Washington D.C. pizzeria.
He has proclaimed date rape âdoes not existâ and said that the only way to avoid it is ânot being a slut.â He has accused various politicians and journalists critical of President Donald Trump of being pedophiles or running child sex rings. He previously has associated with the alt-righters and white-nationalists . . . And now, with Kelli Ward.
This op-ed also includes a selection of Cernovichâs tweets that include stunning proclamations of overt racism and misogyny.
Ward has the audacity to pretend she isnât familiar with Cernovichâs views â yet she invites him to accompany her on a campaign tour? A classic dog whistle to the Trump base. The Republican party has truly gone off the rails.
Last night, Kasie Hunt on MSNBC challenged Ward regarding this endorsement. Ward basically shrugged it off by not answering the questions and, instead, spouted lists of memorized talking points (starting at 3:10).
Yet again, Republicans empower the President by doing nothing
Republicans, who control the House and Senate, are taking zero action after our President was accused in Federal Court of committing a crime that influenced the outcome of the 2016 election. Today, Chuck Todd started his show with a montage of Republican Senatorsâ responses which amounted to nothing more than a collective shrug â as if this has nothing to do with them. Yet, it has everything to do with them. They should immediately begin a congressional investigation to determine if Trump is a co-conspirator in the crime that Michael Cohen confessed to. Cohen claims Trump was not just a passive participant, but actually instigated the crime by directing Cohen to carry it out. What more probable cause is needed? Republicans should be outraged. Instead, we get, âmeh.â
Some sound bites from the Senatorsâ responses:
Sen. Orrin Hatch: âI donât think he can be indicted while sitting in office, but weâll just have to see where this all works out . . .â
Sen. Pat Toomey: âObviously, this is very, very unfortunate. Itâs very serious. I want to see this go through our judicial system. Thatâs whatâs been happening and, you know, weâll see it through.â
Sen. Jeff Flake: âThe Mueller investigation is not a witch hunt.â
Sen. Lindsey Graham: âNo, itâs not a good day for the President. I mean youâve got an accusation by his former lawyer that he did conspire to violate campaign finance laws. I donât know the intricacies of campaign finance laws, so it is not a good day.â
Sen. Bob Corker: âIâm sure there are going to be other revelations that come up and I think we ought to just let the process work.â
Sen. John Cronyn [In response to a reporterâs question, âSo youâre not concerned?â]: No thatâs not what I said. Thatâs what you said." [Dodges behind a door.]
Translation in every case: âIâm going to furrow my brow and pretend I care while I stand by and do absolutely nothing.â
And what about Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan, the top two congressional Republicans? Has this latest five-alarm development galvanized them into action? Hardly. They both have made no comments whatsoever.
Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell brushed past reporters Wednesday without answering questions about Cohen or the possibility that the lawyerâs accusations about an illegal campaign cover-up are grounds for impeachment proceedings against Trump. GOP House Speaker Paul Ryan, who is away from Washington, had no direct response either. - Washington Post
Very poor responseâŚthanks for recap @Keaton_James . Just watching their news bites now.
OutrageousâŚand tepid.
"No he can not be indicted, " is the sure fire answer now.
ComâonâŚ
There is a 2 minute videoâŚand I summarize a bit of it here.
Coal miners work has been hard work, and it is has been both Democratic and currently Republic. Appalachia area voted heavily for Gore. But there was pushback to go towards a R president and rebel against the âelites.â
But coal industry is an unsafe industry, itâs got a terrible impact on the environment.
Coal Miner to Trump: âCoal Mining Isnât Coming Backâ
A fifth-generation coal miner from Appalachia tells Trump his plan to loosen regulations on coal-fired plants is not only harmful to the environment, but also bad for the future of the region.
In the op-ed video above, Nick Mullins, a fifth-generation miner and a ninth-generation Appalachian from Virginia, explains why Trumpâs sunny rhetoric about the coal industry and plans to lower emissions standards are not helping regular coal miners â theyâre lining the pockets of industry executives. As coal seams dwindle, Trumpâs promises to revive the industry sound false and regressive. Itâs time to invest and create other economies in the region to give opportunities to the next generation of Appalachians.
As invisible as the image is of The Emporer is not wearing any clothes,
âThe Emperorâs New Clothesâ (Danish: Kejserens nye klĂŚder) is a short tale written by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, about two weavers who promise an emperor a new suit of clothes that they say is invisible to those who are unfit for their positions, stupid, or incompetent â while in reality, they make no clothes at all, making everyone believe the clothes are invisible to them. When the emperor parades before his subjects in his new âclothesâ, no one dares to say that they do not see any suit of clothes on him for fear that they will be seen as stupid. Finally, a child cries out, âBut he isnât wearing anything at all!â Hans Christian Andersonâs Emporer wearing no clothes
We see this President not having a (realistic) clue about his circumstances it seems. Now he says he really can not be prosecuted because he has not committed any crimesâŚ
Well, with that and the âI can sell you a bridgeâŚâ kind of logic, the NYT Neal Katylâs Opinion piece.
Opinion
This Conspiracy Theory Should Worry TrumpWhen two or more people join together to break the law, as Michael Cohen says he and the president did, the penalties can be harsh.
President Trump needs a new defense. He started out with the claim that he didnât know anything about payments that his former lawyer Michael Cohen arranged or made to the former Playboy model Karen McDougal and the pornographic film actress Stormy Daniels. Mr. Cohenâs tape destroyed that assertion, at least as it applied to Ms. McDougal.
His defense then evolved to denying any personal responsibility for those actions. Predictably, Mr. Cohenâs plea agreement on Tuesday destroyed that defense, too, after he told a federal judge under oath that the president had directed him to arrange payments to the two women, who claim to have had affairs with Mr. Trump, âfor the principal purpose of influencing the election.â
Now President Trump has moved on to a new defense, claiming that what he did wasnât a crime and so it canât be prosecuted. That argument has no basis, either, and is inconsistent with centuries of Anglo-American law.
I really learned something here. I never realized why crimes committed as part of a conspiracy are levied much more severe penalties than crimes committed by an individual â even though, on the face of it, the crimes may be very similar. This article explained the reasoning and it makes sense to me. I guess it must make sense to lots of people, since, as the article explains, conspiracy crimes have been treated much more harshly than crimes committed by an individual âin the Anglo-American legal tradition for over 500 years.â